This is by no means a full list of links related to our work and efforts that is on the web. But this should give you an idea about what we are into. We are very active in our community, and are speaking out for positive changes. There should be more of that in our society.

First political posting in a year and half

Mon, 04/27/2015 - 20:53 — mark donham

Wow, I don't know why it has taken me a year and half to write another political post. For the most part, that is what I wrote about primarily for over 6 years. It isn't that I haven't been paying attention to politics - to the contrary. My interest is as high now as ever. I guess I just haven't felt like writing about it. But I have been building up in my mind to write about this for awhile, and today I have the time and I'm going to jot down some thoughts.

The 2014 federal elections put the Republicans in control of the Senate and they maintained control of the House. I attribute that more to the Democrats' failures rather than the Republicans' appeal. Basically, what happened was that Obama, knowing that as long as the Republicans controlled the House, that he wouldn't get anything progressive passed, tried forms of appeasement. This didn't work, though, because the Republican House wasn't going to go along with anything that Obama was for, even if it was a resolution praising mothers for their apple pie baking. McConnell and the Republican minority in the Senate was also going to stop just about everything proposed. Obama wasn't going to get anything done. This was McConnell and Boehner's revenge at Obama for being re-elected after McConnell said that the Republicans' No. 1 goal should be to keep Obama from getting a second term. They failed at that, so their fall-back position, "Plan B" so to speak, was to just make sure Obama didn't get one thing done that he could point to as progress.

Obama should have just put the progressive agenda out there and let the Republicans knock it down relentlessly. At least he would have perhaps fired up his base more and indicated a real contrast between the parties. He's doing better at that now.

Now the politics is turning toward the 2016 presidential election. The Republican primary is very crowded. This could make it easier for a less "mainstream" candidate to come into the convention with a lead. This could get very interesting as the more "tea party" faction of the Republicans continues to influence the entire party, making the more centrist Republicans very nervous.

On the Democrat side, Hillary Clinton seems to be overwhelming favorite. She is certainly the most "qualified" of all the candidates if you take a more traditional view of "qualified." She has been First Lady, U.S. Senator, Sec. of State, and nearly the Democratic candidate for president. No other candidate comes close to that resume'.

The Republicans, with the press jumping on the bandwagon, are giving everything they have to try and dent her. So far, they haven't - at least to any degree that would hurt her chances. They risk looking like they are picking on a woman if they go too far, and they temper Clinton by showing that she can take the heat. If they continue to go after her with such fervor, they soon have to come up with something that sticks or else they are going to become sheep that calls wolf too often. I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but Libya, personal email accounts, and Clinton Foundation money aren't going to do it.

I do not see any serious obstacles at the moment to Ms. Clinton becoming the first female president of the U.S. The Republicans face serious problems with the immigration positions, and will stumble in key states as they did against Obama. Many women will get behind her, and from my point of view, it's time for a female president in the U.S. We certainly won't be the first modern westernized country to have a female leader. A female president certainly won't be any worse than most of our male presidents, and hopefully will do an even better job.